Motherhood
by Inkwell Quill
Summary: Mystique discovers that there is life within her, and she questions what kind of mother she will. After all, she has failed all of her other children. Graydon leads an anti mutant propaganda group, Kurt is an X-Man, and Rogue despises her. What else could go wrong?


**A/N: I have always been fascinated with the X-Men. For classics, I love the 90's X-Men cartoon. However, as for story, I love X-Men Evolution. Mystique has always been one of my favorite characters, and this little piece popped into my head.**

* * *

Rubbing her temples, Raven took a deep breath in. How could anything like this have happened? She knew how, but why? Why had she not been more careful? She was always careful. Too careful. She was with so many men so frequently to do what she needed to, that she never enjoyed the deed. But sometimes the situations Erik would put her into were delicate in their nature. It was often information retrieval, instead of taking out a dangerous target. Things had changed. She was more of a spy now than a warrior. Sometimes she didn't even know what she was fighting for anymore. The team of delinquents that Erik had her assemble were more troublemakers than actual Brotherhood members. They were only there for the food, shelter, and independence. They didn't want to join Xavier because they knew there would be discipline and rules. It was something they all really needed, and she was more than ready to get them in shape. But Erik didn't consider honing their abilities that important. They were a mild distraction to Xavier's children, something just to keep them distracted while he worked on whatever his latest plan was.

It was once a mission that she had believed in. He had been a powerful speaker before, someone who could sway a crowd without the need for telepathy. It came from the raw passion that was etched into his being. She had been so young when they first met, but he had found her interesting. She worked her way up his ranks, which were mighty them. That was when her first child was born. Erik had sent her to seduce Victor Creed; the name gave her chills the way it rolled off her tongue. And seduce him she did- straight to his bed. He was rough, with only pleasure to himself, hurting her during the process. And then she discovered she was going to have his child, the child of Sabretooth. It was revolting. She hid it from Erik, which was easy enough with her abilities. And when he was born, she was delighted to find him with a human appearance. Not a monster like the semen donor of his father, and not an obvious mutant like her. She gave him away, but not before naming him. Graydon Creed.

It was quite a few years before she conceived again. This time it was on purpose. She was deep within Bavaria, wedded to a noble. His money and resources were vital at the time for Erik's mission. He was low on funds, and Raven would give a 'charitable' donation from her hefty allowance. It didn't cause Xavier's head to turn, and she enjoyed the lavish lifestyle. But her husband was superstitious, and when she didn't become pregnant, he began to question her. She tried and tried to allow herself, she knew her cycle very well. No matter what she did though, no matter what she did or plan, there was no baby. She finally concluded that it was him, but he would not accept that. He threatened to disown her if she did not produce him an heir, but Erik would not let her defend herself. And so she listened to him, but took matters into her own hands.

It was fun at first. She would disguise herself as different women, wives of the various servants. She couldn't let her reputation be tarnished, or rather the Baron's reputation. He would send her away for good. And so she was different people. That all changed though, when a man arrived with a charming smile and a devilish grin. He came with prestige, invited by the man she shared a bed with. But as her husband was away, tending to his duties, the man approached her. Like she, he was a mutant. His royalty came from another dimension though, and it was then that Raven realized her husband dabbled in the dark arts.

Azazel's tongue was like fire and ice. His words would rile her up, just to calm her back down again. And as he revealed his true self, she lusted after him. She did not love him, she did not know if that was something she was even capable of. But everything about him tantalized her, drew her in. She lay in his arms willingly, fully enjoying her time spent with him. She did not pay attention to controlling the different aspects of her body. For once she felt relaxed, and paid no heed to when her body was ready to conceive. And conceive she did.

Her husband, now a count, was overjoyed. Azazel informed her it was the deal they had made- that the baron would have a son born of his wife. Although it angered her that both treated her as no more than a piece of meat, womb of which to simply have a child, she was humored. Her husband was foolish enough to believe his deal meant that his son would be from his loins; not the devil from which he had his contract.

The night her son was born was one she would never forget. The baron paced outside the door, only a midwife and doctor assisting her. The former was from the town, the latter brought in upon her insistence. The pregnancy had not been easy, and she suspected the birth just as difficult. While she had been in her natural form to birth Graydon, it had given her the ability to morph whatever she needed to make it easy. But here, now, she had to maintain her human form. That was far more difficult that she had thought, and there were many times she almost revealed her true nature just to finish the painful birth.

It was when he came out that the silence overcame the room. Covered in a blue fuzz, a small tail flicked inside of her still as he lay in between her legs. The doctor and the midwife said nothing, simply staring at her and then the screaming infant. The baron burst in, his face exploding from joy to horror. He shouted at her, screamed before he lifted the child by its leg. It was then that she snapped, allowing her body to turn. He felt comfortable, she could fight the pain this way. With just the move of her hips, she snapped his neck while twisting and grabbing the baby. In an instant, the other two were dead as well.

She raced outside. He, she realized it was truly a born, was whimpering against her skin. She couldn't keep it, Erik wouldn't let her. She couldn't do what she did before either; he was blue. With a tail. Gazing down at him, she sneered. He was missing fingers and most of his toes. Everything about him was malformed and disfigured. She knew he would only live a life of misery and suffering and pain.

Standing at the edge of her favorite place, she closed her eyes as she listened to the roar of the waterfalls. It drowned out his cries, which she struggled to keep locked out of her mind. She held him close to her bosom, looking down into his golden eyes. They were large, and he cooed as he reached up towards her face. She spoke to him, telling him that she was sorry. She was saving him. Unlike her, he could never pretend to be normal. Even if she gave him to Xavier, he would be hidden away. What kind of a life was that? Kissing him on the forehead, she prayed. For the first time in her life, she acknowledged that there could be a god of some kind. And even if he hated her for all the crimes she had committed, everything that she had done, she begged for him not to punish her son. With a final amen, she let go. She didn't want to watch him fall. She turned her back, his precious face, her baby's face, forever ingrained into her mind.

She had left afterwards. Stayed far from Erik and his pleas of needing her to be with different men. She developed a friendship of sorts with another woman, someone who could glimpse into the future. Her name was Irene Adler. She foresaw a powerful mutant, one that would one day fly and topple buildings with her strength. One that would be untouchable. And so Raven hunted her down, a four year old by the name of Anna Marie. Irene would call her Rogue, and the name stuck. But as Erik pushed her more and more, she handed over the duties of mothering one last time. Irene would care for the girl, the daughter that Raven always wanted.

And now, so much had changed. All of her choices, everything she had done, it had all turned against. Graydon was human, and the fact that she had abandoned him led him to hate mutants when he found out his heritage. He developed the Friends of Humanity, which had caused a high mutant death rate. Her second child had been saved by Azazel, and anonymously given to a Catholic family in Germany. Her baby had been named Kurt Wagner, and he was now an X-Men. Technology had developed, and because of that, he was able to walk around and look normal. Even go to high school. Rogue was standoffish, a member of the X-Men now as well. She was withdrawn, and struggled to be social at all.

So no, she decided. This time she would not be giving her child. She would keep the child within her womb, no matter what Erik would say. Whether it be a son or a daughter, whether it be human or mutant, she would keep it. No matter what her track record showed, no matter what she did in the past, she did care for all of her children. And this one, perhaps, she would be able to show that she cared.


End file.
